Celestine (great color) on Calcite (new find - 2023)

Item Description

From a new discovery in mid 2023, here we have an unlikely find of richly colored blue Celestine from the Badghis Province of Afghanistan, far to the west of the more traditional specimen-producing provinces like Kunar, Nuristan, Laghman and Badakhshan. These specimens feature excellent crystal with a stronger than average color for the species, and they have formed atop beautiful golden-yellow Calcite for a stark contrast of color. This piece features a handful of notably sharp, well-formed, lustrous, gemmy, strong "steel" blue colored prismatic crystals of Celestine measuring up to 2.2 cm, sitting on micro-crystallized Calcite matrix. The Celestines are in good condition, though there are some very slight imperfections on the termination of the main crystal, so it's not completely pristine. A very attractive and certainly desirable specimen for any fan of minerals from Afghanistan or worldwide Celestines. I doubt many of you have one of these in your collection, so don't miss out, as we don't know how many more there will be going forward.